


Morse Code and Moonlight

by RogueFanKC



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alpha Peter Quill, Alpha Thor (Marvel), Alpha Tony Stark, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Beta Bruce Banner, Beta Sam Wilson, Bondage, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt Pietro Maximoff, Hurt Steve Rogers, Jealous Sam Wilson, Kidnapping, M/M, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Omega Steve Rogers, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is a Little Shit, Sam Wilson Is a Good Bro, Sassy Loki (Marvel), Steve Rogers Is a Good Bro, Vampire Bucky Barnes, Vampires, Werewolves, Whump, nuzzling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-09-23 20:12:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17086967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RogueFanKC/pseuds/RogueFanKC
Summary: A small fic based on the Moonlight AU of Umikochanart. Many thanks for the wonderful A/B/O werewolf/vampire universe she has created.Steve Rogers, Omega werewolf, could probably say that getting kidnapped wasn't part of his plans.  Neither could Peter Parker or Pietro Maximoff.And if Bucky wasn't going to kill Peter for his role in this, Pietro looked like he absolutelywould. Although right now Pietro was wondering what in the name of Hell did he ever do to deserve to be trapped and abducted with these two?Could things gets anyworse?





	1. Peter Feels Bad Enough As Is

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Umikkchann](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Umikkchann/gifts).



> For [Umikkchann](http://umikochannart.tumblr.com/). Thank you for your art and for your Moonlight AU.
> 
> If you need background on the Moonlight AU, here's [Umikkchan's tumblr with the Moonlight tag](http://umikochannart.tumblr.com/tagged/Moonlight) with art and her asks and explanations about it.

                Sarah Rogers’ voice sounded in his distant memory, despite being a faded echo in his half-consciousness, reassuring and warm during those long nights as a malnourished cub in the pack:

                _Omegas are so, so revered, Stevie.  I know you will make me and your father proud.  Someday you’ll be treasured as the special person you are, respected as the noble wolf you will grow up to be, and find someone who will bring joy and peace for all your years.  Don’t give up on that belief, all right, Stevie?  Don’t be scared of what you are, don’t concentrate on the troubles being an Omega brings, all right son?_

                This was one of the times where Steve Rogers wondered if his mother truly believed the encouragements she told him or if she attempted to soothe the upcoming reality with a white dream.

                For thirty odd years later, Steve was far from being treated like a treasure.

                He was actually chained, gagged, and being dragged through the bitter cold and mud, with Crossbones taking extra pleasure in delivering a kick or an excruciating electric shock on the collar fastened around Steve’s neck.

                To his credit, Steve put up a valiant struggle and required over twelve men to take him down.

                Still, it did little to bring comfort to his situation.

                Blood was running down his head, face, and throbbing temple, and his ankle was severely fractured, making him wince in pain each time his foot caught on the ground as the two unnamed mercenaries continued to roughly escort him.  If his broken foot didn’t make it impossible to try to run off, the heavy iron lashed around his chest, knees, and legs did; they were cold, laboriously dense, and chaffed raw against Steve’s skin and fur.  Steve would have gladly wiped the blood off his face if his wrists weren’t tied with additional chains behind his back.  And what made the whole humiliating experience worse was the cloth wedged between his teeth.   Not only was it thick and pliable and made his jaw ache, the rag was soaked with wolfsbane extract, threatening to suffocate him, and Steve grimly bit down on his gag in an effort to prevent himself from vomiting and choking to death on his bile.

                Despite the torture and being agonizingly frog-marched across the forest, unable to get help and clearly sent off for horrors unknown, Steve could only think of Bucky.

                He just hoped Bucky would catch on and realize why he wasn’t able to reconvene as promised earlier…

                Although the thought of how all their months of planning and secretive hoarding to run away and flee the Stark Pack and Strange’s coven to make a new life was now all for naught made Steve so sick and nauseous to his stomach.

                Finally, Crossbones and his men arrived to an armored truck, similar to the ones used to deliver money to banks.  Steve noticed the metal doors and windows were fitted with iron and silver, and curiously, the werewolf could detect the odor of rock salt.

                Steve let out a muffled curse as he was unceremoniously tossed in the back of the truck, landing hard on his right arm and side, the chains pressing unbearably against his bones.  Fiercely panting through his nose and trying to not focus on the pain, Steve opened his eyes as the truck doors slammed shut, only to find that the entire interior of his prison was decorated with wooden crosses of various sizes, coated with salt.  And inside, trying to shy away from the holy trinkets surrounding them was…

                Steve’s eyes widened at the sight of the two other bound and gagged figures next to him.

                Peter Parker, whimpering and terrified, tried to shy away from the werewolf as best as he could, while Pietro Maximoff let loose a furious snarl upon recognizing Steve Rogers instantly.

                “ **This is your fault, werewolf!** ” Pietro shouted, but the gag was too effective, so what came out was loud, incomprehensible gibberish.

                _Shit._

                **_Oh shit._**

                Despite Bucky’s warrant that Strange’s son wouldn’t blab and tattle, he must have still tailed them anyway.

                And with Clint distracted, the teenager must have inadvertently led Crossbones to not only Steve but Pietro as well, and that one moment of being a reckless, nosy adolescent now put all three of them in danger.  For Steve could only imagine that finding both an Omega and a pure-blood vampire was like winning two lottery jackpots on the same day to Crossbones and his employers.

                Now Pietro had even more of a reason to resent and abhor Clint’s offer to help Bucky and Steve escape…

                Steve’s head lowered.  He and Bucky definitely didn’t intend for Pietro to be exposed like this or for any of this to happen.  The truck started and began to drive in gear before Peter, Pietro, and Steve all felt another painful jolt of electricity flow down their bodies, causing them to cry out as the collars around their necks roasted their skin.  Crossbones’ voice rang out from the front.

                “No smart ideas,” he warned sadistically, jiggling the remote in plain view at Steve, “The kid is expendable.”

                Steve glared daggers, but he remained silent, which Crossbones took as confirmation of submission as he slid the metal window shut before the vehicle began its bumpy ascent out of the forests.

                The two vampires and lone Omega just remained sullenly silent, lying on the cold surface.  Once in a while, Peter or Pietro would accidentally jolt against a cross due to the sudden shifting of the road, and hissing upon contact, said vampire would scuttle fast back to the center of the chamber.  Which made the situation even more maddening for Pietro for he either had to decide between being in close proximity with the two beings who put him in this mess or being scalded or scorched by the imprisoning holy relics.

                If he had his hands free, Pietro would have gladly disemboweled both Steve and Peter in a heartbeat.  And use the resulting gore and bone to make Christmas ornaments for Clint to decorate the tree with.

                Actually, upon second thought, Clint always said he could use a new coffee table.  And furniture made of ivory _could_ be tasteful…

                However, all the pure-blooded vampire could do was glower angrily at Steve all the meanwhile.

                Steve couldn’t even look at Pietro condemnatory face.

                The tense situation was then dispelled by Peter’s whimpering, and both Pietro and Steve looked at the teenager to see Peter crying softly despite the cloth in his mouth, tears and snot running down his face and chin as he did his best to curdle in a ball.

                Steve felt his heart clench; Peter looked so miserable, it was distressing.

                Unable to talk through his gag, Steve managed to position one claw on the metal floor and tapped in Morse Code.

                I-T-S-A-L-L-R-I-G-H-T-T-H-E-Y-L-L-F-I-N-D-U-S.

                Peter lifted is head at Steve while Pietro just glared, raising one eyebrow in disbelief.

                Steve just gave Peter a soft look as he tapped again.

                I-T-S-N-O-T-Y-O-U-R-F-A-U-L-T-I-D-O-N-T-B-L-A-M-E-Y-O-U.

                Pietro huffed before (surprisingly) he tapped on the floor in Morse code in response.

                I-D-O.

                Peter’s face fell which Pietro enjoyed whole-heartedly.

                Steve continued to tap, now understanding why his mother told him those white lies during his childhood…

                M-Y-N-A-M-E-I-S-S-T-E-V-E-W-H-A-T-S-Y-O-U-R-N-A-M-E.

                Pietro shoved his chained feet and kicked at Steve’s bruised thigh, trying to prompt the werewolf to stop and shut up, but Steve ignored Pietro as he tapped again.

                W-H-A-T-S-Y-O-U-R-N-A-M-E.

                There was a cold silence before to Pietro’s irritation, Peter then tapped back.

                P-E-T-E-R-P-A-R-K-E-R.

                Steve’s eyes crinkled, as he trying to smile, before he drummed.

                N-I-C-E-T-O-M-E-E-T-Y-O-U.

                Pietro then got in the conversation again as he rapped back on one claw behind his back.

                F-U-C-K-Y-O-U-B-O-T-H.

                Steve gave Pietro a look before giving an unexpectedly snarky response.

                Y-O-U-O-F-F-E-R-I-N-G.

                Given the flush of purple rage coloring Pietro’s cheeks and how his eyes were glowing with murder, Steve felt it was so totally worth it.

                Pietro’s furious tapping actually scratched into the metal floor.

                I-H-A-T-E-Y-O-U-A-N-D-B-U-C-K-Y-S-O-F-U-C-K-I-N-G-M-U-C-H.

                Steve couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as he grunted through his nose, but Peter’s next sentence caused his gloom to return.

                I-M-S-C-A-R-E-D.

                Peter couldn’t help it as he sniffed.

                Steve couldn’t think of what else he could say, and helplessly, Steve did the one thing he could in his situation.  The Omega scooted closer to Peter until he was side by side with the teenager.  Like his mother used to do many times, Steve rubbed his bearded chin and face on the top of Peter’s head and began to nuzzle Peter before he started growling underneath his gag.

                Peter flinched and tried to shy away, despite inching closer to the crosses latched to the wall while Pietro looked like he wanted to headbutt Steve directly in the face.

                Steve then tapped away.

                G-O-A-H-E-A-D-A-N-D-C-R-Y-B-U-T-T-H-E-Y-W-I-L-L-F-I-N-D-U-S.

                To Steve’s relief, Peter didn’t scoot away from him upon seeing Steve did not censure him in the slightest.  And in the stony emptiness of the truck compartment, Peter felt drawn in to the Omega’s presence, like he was a furnace during a winter day as Steve continued to growl and nestle against the child vampire.

                It wasn’t a fierce or dangerous growl, but more calming, deeper, sincere, like a father wolf burrowing his cub against him, a growl that came from Steve’s paternal instincts that was internally howling as it latched onto Peter like a surrogate, a growl that promised protection and safety under the embers of a small but persistent flame.

                Steve rubbed his cheek against Peter’s hair back and forth in a steady rhythm, and Peter couldn’t help but feel his heart lighten a microscopic bit as felt Steve’s beard brush against his head, the warmth of the werewolf’s body radiating against his marble skin.  Little by little, Peter’s tension melted away, his breathing slowed, and Peter even rested his head against Steve’s broad shoulder, shivering slightly.

                He wanted his father so badly.

                After a few minutes, to Steve’s inward amusement, Pietro inched his bound body closer to Peter so that the terrified teenager was in between them, and likewise, Pietro positioned himself close enough so that he and Peter were shoulder to shoulder as well.  There was the faintest brush of fingers as Pietro pressed against the adolescent’s body, and Peter actually felt a little safer.

                What the hell.

                Pietro could hate Peter Parker and Steve Rogers later.

  
Art by [umikochann](http://umikochannart.tumblr.com/)

                All the meanwhile Steve tapped softly on the metal floor as the truck navigated on to destinations unknown.

                B-U-C-K-Y-W-I-L-L-F-I-N-D-U-S.

                T-O-N-Y-W-I-L-L-F-I-N-D-U-S.

                D-O-C-T-O-R-S-T-R-A-N-G-E-W-I-L-L-F-I-N-D-U-S.

                D-O-N-T-G-I-V-E-U-P.

                I-T-S-N-O-T-Y-O-U-R-F-A-U-L-T.

                W-E-L-L-G-E-T-O-U-T-O-F-T-H-I-S-S-O-O-N.

                And as the truck traversed onwards, the three of them just stayed like that, finding comfort in the closeness of the overpowering darkness.


	2. Safe To Say It Got Worse

                Before too long, the truck ceased to a stop, brakes creaking as Steve felt the soil now change to solid concrete and the Omega also smelled faint lingering whiffs of sterile plastic, ozone, and copper wiring.  Pietro shared a look with Steve, and Steve immediately understood the hint.

                If the doors opened, and Steve and Pietro both attacked at the first instant, they might be able to take their captors by surprise and…

                Another surge of electricity arose from their collars, and all three of the prisoners arched backwards due to the sudden electrocution.  Peter was actually shrieking in pain while Steve tasted blood in his mouth.  The doors then opened just as the intense voltage faded, causing the werewolf and vampires to crumple under the gazes of Crossbones and his team of mercenaries.

                Brock Rumlow intoned to his men, “New orders.  Take the kid to Zola.”

                Pietro’s head shot up.  He heard horror stories of Arnim Zola that would have even disgusted Vlad the Impaler.  Apparently, Doctor Strange must have told Peter some of those same ghastly rumors for Peter began to back away hurriedly as fast as he could from the truck’s opening, whimpering.  Still, with a nod from Crossbones, three burly bodybuilders rushed forward and one caught hold of the chains wrapped around Peter’s ankles before dragging the struggling adolescent forward.  Peter kept writhing against his bonds while pleading and screaming “No, no, no!” underneath his gag.

                “ _I don’t care…_ ” Pietro thought to himself, trying to block out Peter’s pleas, “ _I’m not getting involved, I’m not getting involved.  This isn’t my problem.  That little shit’s the reason I got kidnapped in the first place.  I don’t care, and I’m not going to do anything stupid._ ”

                Swiveling on his back, the vampire kicked out with both of his feet as hard as he could to Peter’s tormentor.  There was a sickening crack before an agonized squeal of pain from the mercenary as the goon collapsed, his femur bone and left hip now crushed.  But at the very least, the sentry released Peter due to Pietro’s intervention.

                With another kick, the vampire sent the guard flying before colliding with Crossbones outside, immediately invoking a ruckus as the commotion got everyone’s attention.

                The other two guards turned on Pietro, but this was exactly what Steve was waiting for as the werewolf managed to limp onto his feet (despite his broken ankle) and shoved his body forward, tackling the two away from Peter and landing directly on the concrete below outside the truck.  Steve added a quick slam with his head, and the blond-haired Omega was pleased to see the splurge of blood that gushed out of the mercenary’s broken nose.

                However, it cost them dearly.

                **_Brzzzzt!_**

                Pietro, Steve, and Peter didn’t nearly feel that last electroshock wave, but it caused all of them to nearly pass out as they flopped ungraciously on the ground, ears ringing and their necks smoking with the disgusting odors of blackened skin.  Through his throbbing head, Steve could hear Crossbones’ command faintly through the buzzing and vertigo.

                “They’re down.  Drug the vamps!”

                Grinding his teeth against his gag in an effort to concentrate through his lightheadedness, Steve feebly raised his head to see the guards tackle and pin down both Pietro and Peter, the two vampires doing their best to resist and writhe despite the men immobilizing them to the concrete.  Pietro managed to send an additional two flying with a lucky kick, but it was inevitable as the brawny soldiers crushed him against the ground as one unit, requiring fifteen to fasten Pietro’s body.  Steve then saw two guards press pads of cotton wool against the vampires’ faces, and amid the blood and sweat, the Omega could smell a powerful combination of halothane, chloroform, ether, and…

                Steve’s eyes widened as the holy water saturating the cotton wool began to eat away at Pietro’s flesh.  Pietro was howling loudly enough to wake the dead as the vampire was forced to inhale the vapor, the holy water perforating his lungs like wet tissue.

                “STOP!” Steve tried to yell, “ **STOP IT!  THEY CAN’T BREATHE!** ”

                Indeed, Pietro was trying to urgently free his nose and mouth from the pad pressed against his face as the vampire’s marble countenance was now flushed a deep crimson red.  Pietro bucked, sunfished, and squirmed as hard as he could, but it was to no avail as the poison leeched into his lungs and body.  With every forced inhale, Pietro was getting weaker and weaker, his capillaries feeling as if they were doused in gasoline and set aflame.  And if it was excruciating for a _pure-blooded_ vampire…

                “ **Stop!** ” Steve roared, muffled, at the sight of Peter Parker gasping under the pad, his body twitching in the mercenaries’ arms as he was being slowly suffocated into unconsciousness.  A heavy boot stomped down on Steve’s backbone and kept the Omega from moving.  Crossbones yanked Steve cruelly by the hair as he sneered into Steve’s ear.

                “Easy, Rogers.  The kid’s just some run-of-the-mill vampire.  Plenty more like the runt,” Rumlow stated coldly.

                With watering eyes, Peter weakly turned his head to glimpse at Steve pleadingly.  The werewolf saw the veins in Peter’s temples pop out and throb and his face turned into such a deep purple that Steve nearly thought the vampire’s skull would pop and explode.

                That was Peter’s last gesture before his eyes fluttered shut, his breathing as shallow as a dying bird’s, going limp.

                With a few more lopsided flops and a final groan, Pietro also fell senseless.

                Steve helplessly looked on in dread, heart beating madly, before Runlow then slammed the Omega’s face down hard onto the concrete.  Steve hissed and bit down on his gag in pain as blood now gushed out of his broken nose before a cold voice broke in the background.

                “ **Enough.**   I said I needed the Omega unharmed, Crossbones.”

                “He is, sir.  Mostly.”

                Steve weakly looked up to see an elderly man in a nicely pressed suit and tie, distinguished, formal, but so very cold, and eyeing at Steve so callously behind his spectacles that Steve couldn’t help but shiver a bit in his sprawled position.

                The scent of Alexander Pierce then hit Steve’s nostrils, and Steve’s blood turned to absolute ice as he realized that he was in the presence of another Alpha werewolf.

                **_Fuck._**

                Pierce turned to Crossbones as the other mercenaries began to cart away the unconscious vampires to the nearby white building and laboratory, commenting, “A pure-blood vampire too.  You and your men will be well-rewarded for the bounty.  _Two-fold_.”

                “Thank you, Sir,” Crossbones said proudly, “And for my injured men?”

                Pierce held up a hand, and for some reason, there was a thick feeling of silent tension building all around them as the chatter from the surrounding legionnaires ceased to a perturbed halt.  There were several injured soldiers who got brutally incapacitated by Steve and Pietro, blood and broken bone, who began to whimper in terror.

                “Oh God…” one of the mercenaries moaned, shuddering.

                “Allow me.  They were hurt due to my assignment, so I will bear the responsibility…” Pierce intoned, removing his glasses as Steve then noticed that the Alpha’s eyes were now shining, one pupil crimson and one yellow, both swirling in shadows and blackness.

                Steve felt his breath catch in his throat as he viewed the magic building around Pierce, the hairs on his body standing high in fright and ebbing back and forth from the freezing chill caressing the entire facility.

                In the background, the troopers who Pietro and Steve injured in their struggles to escape began to snivel and whine for forbearance.

                “No!” begged one through his broken nose, “ **Please!** ”

                “I got kids!” cried the one whose pelvis Pietro had shattered.

                A third wounded mercenary tried to run away, dashing off for the far woods and abandoning his team.

                But it was too late as Pierce’s eyes flashed, and he opened his mouth.

                Steve couldn’t explain **_exactly_** what he saw.

                All he could remember distinctly was the wisps of dark fog surging out of Pierce’s lips and jaw, tendrils of smoke writhing and blitzing forward like tentacles before touching each injured man with a brush of haze against skin.  There was a shrill scream from each victim as their skin was set alight and aflame before they disintegrated before Steve’s very eyes.  Within mere seconds, each and every one of the humans’ bodies were rendered into smoldering ashes before being caressed and absorbed within the smoky feelers.  The tendrils retreated and faded into the Alpha’s mouth, and Pierce very nonchalantly licked his lips as if savoring the taste while placing his glasses back.

                “That was… _satisfying_ ,” Pierce intoned unflappably, musing as if he just sampled a mere appetizer in a fancy restaurant.

                Crossbones and his remaining men just looked on.  Any fear or misgivings about Pierce murdering their coworkers, they hid it well.

                Steve just stared on, unable to look away and trembling.

                Just what the Hell was this Alpha?

                “Bring the Omega to my personal quarters.  I will dress his wounds.  Meanwhile, the money has been transferred to all of your accounts along with a **very** generous tip.  I couldn’t be more pleased with this delivery,” Pierce instructed, and Steve was roughly hauled to his feet, causing the werewolf to wince again at the throbbing in his ankle as he did his best to tussle against the strong grips holding him in place.

                Rumlow stood at full attention as he bravely then asked a daring appeal, chest puffed out, “Sir, then may I ask for a small request?  If it be merciful for you to grant it?”

                Pierce gave a stoic and neutral expression on his grave face, claws extended, but he gave a small nod.

                Crossbones spoke clearly, head held high, “I wish to have an hour alone with Rogers.  Please sir, if you can, I would like an hour uninterrupted with the Omega once he’s safely contained.”

                There was a strained pause as even Steve stopped struggling in the mercenaries’ clutches, flummoxed at the barefaced demand.

                For a fleeting and hopeful moment, Steve thought Pierce would refuse the entreaty (and immediately kill Rumlow).

                His heart sank when Pierce steely intoned, “One hour.  Secure the Omega, and you may do as you wish provided the Omega is non-blemished and fully functional in every physical sense.”

                **_Shit._**

                Desperate, Steve now resisted and squirmed harder, but more and more soldiers hefted the burly werewolf over their shoulders, holding firm to his chained body and legs as he was hoisted in the air like a sack of potatoes.

                “Thank you, Sir,” Rumlow replied with a bow, barely able to contain his sadistic glee.  As Pierce and his security ambled away, Crossbones got into Steve’s red face, mere inches apart, and sniggered haughtily.

                “Within the hour, I’ll be having you scream **my** name instead of Barnes’.”

                Steve’s eyes flashed yellow and he gave a muffled but fierce snarl.  Unable to help the surge of anger, Steve tried to lunge himself at Brock, but the soldiers held the Omega back, leaving Steve helpless and unable to do anything but fume in frustration.

                “Should we drug the werewolf too, Sir?” asked one of the men as they carried the squirming victim, but Brock shook his head.

                “Nah, I’d rather have him conscious and awake.  I have some things I’ve been meaning to try that won’t even leave a bruise on his body.”

                “You into Omegas?” asked another legionnaire, titling his head.

                “Not really, but Rogers is special.  Barnes will never be able to live with the fact that I ruined his boyfriend forever after I’m done with the wolf.  And the best thing is, I don’t even need a rubber!”

                The chorus of laughter and toxic mockery drifted in Steve’s ears as he wearily hung his head, at a loss at how the predicament got much grimmer.  Steve gave an inconsolable moan under his gag as he tried to not think about Bucky who was probably searching for him right this very moment, frantic and mad with worry.

                Of how devastated Bucky would be when he found Steve in the aftermath of Crossbones’ assault…

                Of how much Bucky’s eyes would fill with disgust and sadness at being unable to look or touch Steve the same way ever again…

                Of how their hope to run far away and just live in a cozy, safe, and quiet life near the sea, just the two of them, was now turning into the worst nightmare and when once discovered, Tony and Stephen would have Bucky and Steve pay dearly in flesh and blood, pound by pound…

                “ _Buck…_ ” Steve thought to himself dejectedly as he was roughly escorted into the facility.


	3. This Is Why We Didn't Want To Tell You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out here's [Umikkchan's tumblr with the Moonlight tag](http://umikochannart.tumblr.com/tagged/Moonlight) with art and her asks and explanations about the Moonlight AU for the backstory. Her art is absolutely gorgeous and she did the commission picture for me.

                “Oh Gods…” gasped Bucky as he rushed over to the bed, “ _Steve…_ ”

                Steve gave a muffled groan of relief through his gag as the vampire hurried to his aid.

                Granted, Steve wasn’t _too_ uncomfortable.

                Being tied naked and spread-eagled to Pierce’s bed wasn’t as terribly horrific as it could have been considering the werewolf was on a soft coverlet of goose-down and a cozy pillow in a moderately furnished bedroom of white satin and silk.  Still, Steve’s heart felt it was going to burst with respite as Bucky, with trembling hands and a pale face, ripped off the electro-collar from Steve’s neck before starting on the chains.

                From the hallways, Sam Wilson roars of fury mixed with the falsetto and gurgling screams of pain from Pierce’s guards.  Already, the walls of the corridor were dripping red.

                There was no doubt about it: Sam was very, **_very_** angry.

                “Did…were you – did Crossbones…touch you?” Buck stammered, cupping his Omega’s face with one hand as he tugged the cloth out of Steve’s mouth.

                Steve sputtered, inhaling greedily to wash away the lingering residue of wolfsbane between his teeth.  He then croaked hoarsely, his mouth dry from hours of having a rag stuffed in it, “No.  I don’t think so.  Rumlow managed to only get in a few kisses before he ran off after I woke up.”

                Steve was just grateful that even chained up, Crossbones didn’t want to risk Pierce’s wrath and desired to wait until Steve was conscious before attempting any degenerate acts.

                Beforehand, despite the soldiers trying to pin him down to the bed, it was impossible to get Steve to remain still.  The werewolf fought, thrashed, squirmed, and writhed so much that it was deemed too risky to unbind Steve long enough to allow Crossbones’ men to retie Steve to the bed.  After Rumlow himself lost a bottom tooth from the werewolf slamming his forehead hard up at Rumlow’s chin, he and the mercenaries ended up drugging Steve in the same manner as Pietro and Peter.

                Steve’s last memory was the sight of Crossbones’ furious and frustrated face inches apart from his own, straddling the chained Omega and sitting atop Steve’s chest, dripping blood out of his mouth, as he chloroformed the werewolf, snarling, “I’ll make you beg!  **_I’ll make you beg!_** You hear me, Rogers?!  **And I’ll enjoy the fear in your eyes when I fuck you raw!** ”

                Whether it was intentional or not, Steve was unconscious for at least two hours.

                Thankfully, even after stirring back to awareness, Steve tried to fake remaining asleep to delay the inevitable as much as he could.  Until losing patience, Rumlow used the shock collar on the werewolf again, forcing Steve to break his feigned slumber.  Steve was unable to resist much as Rumlow began eagerly biting, kissing, and sucking each inch of Steve’s body before he moved towards Steve’s cock.

                It was at _that_ moment that the explosions and gunfire outside the prison started.

                Steve promised that he would get down on his knees and thank every saint known for the good timing should he survive all this.

                Mercifully, the fracas and turmoil of Tony’s pack and Strange’s coven attacking the facility forced Rumlow to hurriedly abscond without even looking back, abandoning Steve to save his own skin.

                Bucky finished removing the last of the chains fastening around Steve’s wrists and ankles before he hugged Steve fiercely, whispering softly and trying his best to not break down, “I’m so sorry, I fucked up.  Oh God, Steve, I’m so sorry…”

                Steve was about to hug back when Sam’s growl from behind interrupted the moment, and Bucky instantly felt Sam’s claws clutching his neck (a sure sign of instant death) and the tip of Sam’s silver knife digging into his back.

                The Beta’s eyes were glowing in protective fury.  And despite the gore and blood smearing his clothes, he was still in the mood for more.  Sam’s fingers just _itched_ to rip Bucky apart.

                “ **Let go of him** ,” Sam growled authoritatively and slowly, teeth bared.

                “Sam…” Steve coughed weakly, throat raspy, “Sam, stop!”

                “Wilson, please!  It’s not - !” Bucky began only to gasp in pain as the knife dug deeper into his back and Sam’s claws bit into his neck, drawing blood like stinging needlepoints.

                “ ** _Now_** ,” growled Sam, clearly not in the mood for negotiations.

                “Sam, stop!  Bucky saved me!” Steve tried to shove away Sam’s hands, but the Beta effortlessly stood firm and Steve was still light-headed and enfeebled.

                “Stevie, it’s fine…” Bucky said slowly, raising both of his hands in the air in surrender and releasing Steve from his arms.

                Which was exactly the prompt Sam needed as he gripped the vampire by the neck before hurling Bucky through the air and into the opposite wall with a heavy thud, effortlessly tossing the vampire like he was a rubber ball.

                **_WHAM!_**

                The alabaster wall was now cracked with a trail of smeared blood as Bucky slid to the floor, head swimming and his hair now wetly matted with blood as it gushed freely from his scalp.

                And it looked like Sam wasn’t going to stop as he slowly and deliberately marched towards the vampire, shifting his grip on the knife and ready to disembowel.

                Nauseous and groggy from the halothane, Steve managed to stumble forward, blocking Sam before Sam could assault Bucky any further, balancing himself on his good foot.

                “Sam, stop!  This isn’t Bucky’s fault!” Steve yelled, pleading.

                “Get out of my way, Steve,” Sam ordered, “He did this to you.”

                “Sam, put the knife down!  Bucky didn’t do anything!”

                “He enticed you, had Loki cast some sort of charm or slipped you something in your drink.”

                “He didn’t do _anything_!  What the Hell are you talking about?!” Steve roared, yellow eyes matching Sam’s.

                Then Bucky managed to hiss from behind despite the throbbing in his head, “Steve, I **had** to tell them, tell Tony and Strange we were planning to run away together.  It was the only way I could get them to cooperate to help find you and Pietro and Peter.  I’m sorry, Stevie, but I was desperate.”

                Sam snapped at Bucky, “ **Shut up, vamp!**   I should castrate you for this shit!”

                “Sam, Bucky didn’t do anything!”

                “You’re not in your right mind.  You don’t love Barnes!  He just put some spell on you to make you think he did, like any double-dealing vampire!”

                “You don’t understand!  This was my choice too!”

                Sam voice dropped to a mocking and aloof callousness.

                “ _Really?_   And what exactly **is** the reason?  What could possibly be **_so important_** that you would abandon us so easily?  Abandon Tony, your safety, your Pack?  Because getting fucked by an underhanded vampire jackass can’t be **_that_** good.”

                “I…”

                Steve faltered, helpless, before he tried again.

                “Just stop.  Bucky’s innocent in this.  _Please._ ”

                “ **No** ,” growled Sam, “This ends now.  I kept my mouth shut when Barnes would openly flirt with you each time we had to deal with Strange and his coven.  I kept my mouth shut when you and Barnes were always sending nude pics of yourselves and giggling over texts like horny, dumb-assed kids.  I even kept my mouth shut and covered for you from Tony whenever you snuck out of the grounds to go meet with Barnes for whatever sick trysts and dates that vamp came up with.  You want to know why?  Because one: I thought this was going to be a temporary fling where you’d eventually come back to your senses when you saw how stupid this whole Romeo-Juliet love story fiasco was and curb-stomp Barnes like the shithead he is.  And two: because I care about your stupid ass, Steve.  **I care.**   Unlike this asshole who did every dirty trick in the book to coerce you into turning your back on me, on Tony, on the rest of the Pack.  So now I’m done.  And I’m ending it, here and now.”

                “Sam - !” tried Steve, but with a swift hook, Sam punched Steve hard across the face and sent him to the floor.  Steve groaned, blood coming down his chin, sprawled out and seeing stars, as Sam menacingly strode forward to Bucky.

                To his credit, Bucky just remained on his hands and knees, despondent and willingly suicidal.

                And for some reason, that unwillingness to defend himself just pissed Sam even further as he was about to stoop down and grab Bucky by the throat.

                With all of his strength, Steve managed to blitz forward and shove Sam Wilson aside, causing the Beta to stumble back several steps away before Steve then positioned himself in front of Bucky protectively.

                “ ** _SAM!_** ” Steve roared, wolfing out, claws now extended and ready to defend Bucky from Sam as the fur sprung forward and his muscles surged and bulged with the promised anticipation of a bloody fight.  Sam didn’t back down, but due to Steven’s shift and the fact that he didn’t take the medicine given by Clint for the past twelve hours due to his kidnapping, Sam got a massive whiff of Steve’s scent.

                The look of murderous fury then drained, slowly, as the yellow blaze in Sam’s pupils died to show the whites all around as Sam stared at Steve in complete, flabbergasted disbelief.

                Sam was so floored, he even dropped his knife as it fell from his limp fingers.

                Shit.

                “You’re…you’re a…” Sam stammered, his eyes wide with surprise…and betrayal.

                Steve looked down in shame before he reverted back to his human state and stooped down to help Bucky up from the floor.

                There was no need to confirm it.

                There was a tense silence for a minute, with Bucky using the wall as a brace to prevent himself from toppling over before Sam trusted himself to speak again, his voice hollow.

                “Why didn’t you tell me?”

                Steve bit his lips and shut his stinging eyes.

                He would have preferred it if he was trying to argue his case with Tony Stark right now.

                “ ** _Why didn’t you tell me?!_** ” Sam shouted, the pain now barbed with anger, “You didn’t trust me?!”

                “I do, just not the fact that you wouldn’t give in to the urges over time,” Steve confessed, still unable to look at his best friend in the eye.

                “But you told Barnes!” Sam snapped, pointing at the vampire who supported Steve as a lean-to, helping the Omega with his broken ankle.

                “And that’s why we were planning to get out of here,” Bucky explained vulnerably, “I wanted Steve safe.”

                “And I fucking don’t?!” Sam roared, his eyes now shining with the fury of a thousand suns.

                “You’re an Beta.  Steve was too scared to tell any of you, especially Tony.  You **_know_** what would happen if he found out Steve’s an Omega!”

                “That’s not your choice to make!” bellowed Sam, and Steve was pained to see Sam’s eyes shining with hurt.

                Bucky also looked glum, clearly seeing that this was going to sever the bond Sam and Steve had for years and years, and by everything that was holy, that look of pity made Sam want to throttle Bucky even more.

                “But it was **_mine_** , Sam,” Steve tried to explain, “I didn’t want to be sent away.  Didn’t want to be treated differently and isolated for God knows how long until eventually an Alpha decides to force me under death into consenting and submitting to him.  Tony couldn’t keep me separated forever from every werewolf in the world.”

                “At least you’d still be safe, still in contact with the Pack!  You’d still be with us!” Sam argued.

                “But I wouldn’t be free with Bucky.”

                Sam got the most awful look on his face, sick realization and despair all rolled into one.  It was as if Steve sucker-punched him in the gut and left him winded.  It was as if he then truly comprehended just how much of this was real, wasn’t a farce, and wasn’t some delusional puppy-love or hate-sex session.

                Choking, Sam turned around and composed himself while digging his fingers into his hair and scalp.  He couldn’t bear looking at Steve right now.

                To his credit, Bucky tried to alleviate the duplicity as he spoke up softly, “Wilson, this wasn’t our intention.  We didn’t want you to find out like this.”

                “ **Shut up** ,” Sam rumbled, now beside himself as he picked up his silver blade from the floor before turning around, pinching his nose in frustration.

                “Sam - ” Steve tried to begin again.

                “ ** _SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!  BOTH OF YOU SHUT YOUR - !_** ” Sam exploded before he took a big inhale and calmed himself down, his hands covering his face while grinding his teeth together in indignant offense.  After another minute, Sam managed to gain control enough to speak again, and the coldness of his voice made Steve wince.

                “Let’s just get out of here.”

                “Sam - ” Steve tried, only to stop when Sam just glared at his best friend with ice.

                “ **Don’t.  Talk.  To.  Me** ,” Sam growled, punctuating each word as if he was trying to stab it with his knife, before he turned his back and stomped out of the room.

                Steve felt like crying.  If this didn’t destroy his friendship, Sam was going to stay furious at Steve for a long, long time.

                “I’m sorry, Steve,” Bucky repeated again as he slowly helped Steve hobble outside, following Sam but giving him a wide berth at the same time.  Thankfully, Sam was trudging slowly enough to allow Bucky and Steve to trail behind.

                “It’s my fault.  I shouldn’t have dragged you into this,” Steve declared, wincing with each step he took.

                Bucky snorted, “Excuse me?  I recall being the idiot who refused to leave your side.  Takes two to be **_this_** level of stupid.”

                Ahead, Sam clenched one hand into a fist, nails digging into his skin.

                After limping, Steve then asked, “Why didn’t you try and find me yourself?  Without letting Tony or Doctor Strange know?”

                Bucky shook his head, replying, “Peter and Pietro were kidnapped too with you.  There’s no way I could have been able to rescue all of you myself, and my pride isn’t worth it if any of you were hurt.  I wasn’t going to leave them behind, not after Clint offered to help us.  And Peter doesn’t deserve this.  Even though I’m going to strangle that little shithead after this.”

                Steve smiled as he wearily rested his head against Bucky’s, murmuring, “Our hero…”

                “A soon-to-be- **dead** hero…”

                Steve winced.

                “Tony and Strange are going to murder us, aren’t they?”

                “Yep.”

                “There’s no way we’re going to get off without any punishment, is there?”

                “Nope.”

                “Did you tell them everything?”

                “Except you being an Omega.  Tony thinks the same as Sam, and Doctor Strange is convinced that you seduced me as a way to spy on his coven and report any pure-bloods to other Hunters to weaken us.  He also thinks you’re behind Peter’s kidnapping.”

                “…we’re going to have to tell them, aren’t we?”

                “Yep.”

                “It’s not too late for me to lie and take the blame, say that I blackmailed or coerced you into helping me.  Tony’ll be mad, but he won’t kill me.  He’ll just…ship me away somewhere.”

                “Like I would let you take all the stupid with you if I let Stark send you away.  I’ll be with you until the end of the line.”

                Steve was about to object, but Bucky held up a finger.

                “We started this stunt together.  Might as well finish it together.”

                Steve didn’t say anything, but he couldn’t help but smile as Bucky touched his forehead against his, an intimate gesture.

                In front of the couple, though he didn’t turn around, Sam scowled.

                He didn’t need to turn around to hear Steve give a shaky exhale through his nose as he beamed at Bucky’s maudlin promise, didn’t need to look to see Bucky’s arm squeezing tenderly around Steve’s waist and cradling his best friend like he was made of gold.

                **His** best friend.  For more than a decade.

                Even though Sam only got a whiff of Steve’s naked scent, he wanted more.

                Sam just wanted to hold Steve, explore him, rub his face in every glorious inch of Steve’s hair and fur and relish the musk, tight muscle, and close intimacy.

                Sam tried.  He really did.

                Sam tried to not think about how he would have gladly died for Steve in a heartbeat if they were ever in a battle, just to protect his stupid, stubborn brother.

                Sam tried not to think of all the times he had been there for Steve as a crying shoulder, a cuddle-buddy, a running partner, a pal to joke around with and wrestle in the rain and eat Sloppy Joes at three in the morning under the moonlight, only to be replaced by _Barnes_ of all things.

                Bucky Fucking Barnes.

                **Asshole.**

                Sam tried to not give in the tantalizing urge for his wolf to rush back, rip Barnes’ throat out with his own teeth, embrace Steve close to his chest while nuzzling the treasured Omega with every ferocious intent and promise, and snarl in front of Barnes’ dying eyes that Steve was his.

                His.

                Not Barnes’.

                Not anyone’s.

                Barnes had no right.

                Steve was always his.

                _HIS._

                **_MINE._**

                _I do, just not the fact that you wouldn’t give in to the urges over time._

                Sam bit his lip.  Hard enough to draw blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yea, about this being the last chapter?
> 
> It got away from me and I wrote more than expected, so the last chapter will be the last one (I think). XD


	4. It's A Wonder No One Has Smacked Loki Yet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in this last chapter; it just got longer and longer. With that said, enjoy and many thanks to Umikkochan!

                Outside, it was absolute chaos.

                The upper floor of the nearby laboratory was scorched and ablaze.

                Several armored trucks were overturned on their sides alongside the numerous broken and bleeding corpses that were littering the entire grounds.

                Gore and flesh mixed with the blackened grass and smoking bullet shells on the concrete while both Tony’s Pack and Doctor Strange’s Coven decimated whatever was left of their enemies.

                Any loyal mercenaries from Rumlow that still remained on the battlefield were easy pickings as Thor, Peter Quill, Bruce, and Tony Stark easily rent them to pieces, teeth and claws now dripping.  Thor and Quill took the brunt of the attacks, blitzing forward with furious howls and slashes as they effortlessly barreled through their enemies like muscular tanks, leaving behind a trail of red.  Thor actually hefted a heavy truck with both hands before hurling it into the building nearby, glass and fire popping out upon impact.  From behind, Tony and Bruce picked apart the stragglers and the dying, small incisions of the metaphorical scalpel with a swift stomp or flick of their claws.  Bruce was idly typing away on a tablet with one hand as he deactivated the majority of the facility’s security networks and automatic armaments by hacking easily into their system.

                In contrast, the vampires moved silently, through the blind-spots and shadows, sneaking in via the cracks and backdoors.  Subtle, silent, and as composed and stoic as ever, they dispatched Pierce’s men neatly via a snapped neck or drained of blood, pale white corpses of marble lying about.  Vision and Natasha were in the scientific laboratory, searching every available room for victims and effortlessly sniffing them out like ruthless bloodhounds.  The fact that there were no screams or noises of surprise from inside the facility was _very_ indicative in their efficiency.  Wanda and Loki were outside amongst the wolves, casting spells left and right, causing the humans around to scream from fear upon Wanda’s mind tricks before collapsing from the brain aneurysms or from Loki as he merrily littered the warzone with charred bodies or carcasses encased in blocks of ice with his golden scepter.

                Doctor Strange however was **_anything but_** composed and stoic.

                He was hammering away the battered and limp corpse of Rumlow with his bare fists, teeth grit and his eyes glowing red, apoplectic and temporarily insane with anguish and fury.  Rumlow was now looking less like a man and more of a bloody, disjointed meat-sack.

                Wanda noticed as she urgently laid a hand on Stephen’s shoulder, trying to break through his frenzied temper as she shouted, “Stephen, that is enough!  **Enough! _STOP!_**   The man is dead already!”

                Strange snarled as he continued his assault, “Not a problem!  I’ll just have Loki raise him up from the dead so that I can kill him again!”

                Loki gave an unimpressed look as he drawled, “ _Oh yes_ , volunteer me to raise a Hunter and bloodthirsty soldier of fortune from the dead.  Never mind that it may be a rather _terrible_ idea that could backfire on us or that you didn’t even **ask** me first if I was willing to do such an act.  Call me old fashioned, but volunteering my services without consulting me first is rather poor form and etiquette.”

                “ ** _LOKI!_** ” roared Doctor Strange, still beside himself, “ **Watch your tone!** I am already - !”

                Stephen’s eyes then rested on Bucky with an injured and dazed Steve leaning heavily against him, and his entire expression grew even more murderous as his eyes with now brightly glittering with apoplectic fury.

                Forgetting Rumlow and with a smooth motion, Doctor Strange got up and marched towards them, fangs and claws bared.  Bucky’s arm around Steve’s waist tightened in reflex while Sam Wilson, despite being hurt from Steve’s lie of omission, touchingly got in front Bucky and Steve, knife brandished out.

                “Back off…” warned Sam.

                Stephen still appeared as if he was going to disembowel all of them regardless until Tony, yellow eyes glowing, got directly in Doctor Strange’s face.  Tony Stark appeared so strong, so unyielding, a true Alpha of danger and untamed savageness simmering underneath his stern, protective expression.

                Surprisingly, Stephen stopped, but it did nothing to quell his rage.

                “ _Move, Tony…_ ” growled Stephen.

                “Steve is Pack.  You do **_not_** touch one of mine,” returned Tony, his voice just as feral.

                “ ** _Peter got kidnapped because of him!_** ”

                “If by ‘him’, you meant **Barnes** , then yes, I’m in full agreement you deliver whatever ass kicking you planned to that asshole.  Otherwise, you’re not laying a finger on Steve.”

                “ ** _Get out of my way!_** ” roared Stephen as he tried to use his speed to circumvent Tony and rush towards the injured Steve Rogers, but with lightning-quick reflexes, Tony grabbed both of Doctor Strange’s wrists and forcefully crossed the vampire leader’s arms against Stephen’s will.  Stephen hissed in pain as Tony pinned his hands out, almost to the point of breaking Stephen’s bones, as Tony did his best to ensure his vampire lover wouldn’t claw him to death for this and remain in place.

                “Stephen… _please_ …” hissed Tony, trying his best to not give in the urge to not snap Doctor Strange’s limbs.

                But the vampire patriarch was now close to uncontrollable as he snarled directly into Tony’s face, “Let go, or so help me, I will rip your throat out with my teeth, Stark!  _You hear me?!_   **Let go!**   I’m warning you that if you don’t get your…goddamned…hands…”

                Doctor Strange trailed off as he realized that Tony Stark’s face paled under the light of the battlefield, that the Alpha was no longer looking at Stephen but rather a bit off to the side and behind him as a tense and uncomfortable silence hushed the other wolves and vampires all around.

                Tony wore an expression of grief, dread, and pity all rolled into one as he gingerly let go to Stephen’s wrists, whispering under his breath, “Oh Gods…”

                With great effort and reluctance, Doctor Strange forced himself to turn around.

                Gravely and as solemn as could be, Vision, Natasha, Clint and Pietro were walking slowly towards Doctor Strange and Tony Stark.  Clint was ambling slowly, trailing from behind Natasha and Vision, on the account that the hunter was tenderly propping Pietro up with Pietro leaning heavily and weakly against the human, stumbling every third step like a toddler trying to learn how to walk.  Pietro’s eyes were glazed and his face ashen (even more so for a living undead), his mouth coated with dried bloodstains and saliva foam.  Shirtless and heavily dazed and groggy, Pietro stumbled as if he was drunk.  Yet with whispers of encouragement, Clint carefully guided Pietro step by step as Wanda, with a gasp of shock, hurried to her brother’s side.

                A few eyebrows were raised upon spotting this.

                A Hunter **willingly** abetting a vampire?

                “Are you all right?!” Wanda demanded frantically, and Pietro shook his head as he tried his best to talk, his voice bubbling with fluid as if his lungs were full of water or that he was half-drowned.

                “Hurts…lungs…can’t breathe well…” Pietro choked, dribbles of drool leaking down the corners of his mouth, as his breathing was as harsh as the worst asthmatic.

                “They made him and the kid inhale holy water vapor.  The damage to his lungs was extensive and he’s still not completely over the halothane and chloroform.  Still, he’s alive, and that’s what matters now,” Clint explained, but despite this, Wanda let loose an oath in her mother tongue.

                But it was Natasha and Vision that was the more serious concern.

                Natasha was dragging the face-down corpse of Armin Zola behind her by one leg, leaving a bloody smear of crimson in her path as she walked effortlessly with great ease.  Her cold face was stony and surprisingly, despite the kill, she didn’t have a speck of blood on her clothes and boots.

                Vision, with a look of grief and loss, was carrying a limp bundle in his lean arms, cradling the body close to his chest…

                “ ** _NO!_** ” screamed Stephen upon seeing Peter Parker’s limp form in Vision’s arms, Peter’s eyes glassy and open, staring at the night sky with pupils that would never see again.  Peter was shirtless and all along his arms were track marks where Zola did numerous injections and Peter’s chest was additionally crisscrossed with horrific gashes and incisions of a scalpel and burn marks of various electrodes.

                Forgetting all else, Doctor Strange sprinted forward, almost a mere blur before he took Peter in his own arms and sank to the ground, trying to gently wake his son or prod him into consciousness, Peter’s head lolling back and forth flaccidly.

                None of the wolves nearby could detect a heartbeat, could sense any sort of life or warmth from the normally cheerful Peter Parker.

                There was a dismal silence from the Stark Pack, and Tony himself felt pained.  As much as he reviled, loathed, and completely despised vampires, Peter was the only one he could classify as decent.

                “Peter?!” begged Doctor Strange in a piteous voice, cracking, “ **Peter?!**   Wake up.  _Wake up, please!_   What did those monsters do to my son?!”

                “Zola…overdosed him…” gasped Pietro, his voice barely audible as he coughed wetly in between words, “Various chemicals…Peter wouldn’t stop screaming…Zola was trying to see…what drugs and poisons…were the most effective…”

                Thor cocked his head in confusion as he commented, “ _Poisons?_   But it’s not holy water, crosses, a wooden stake, fire, or sunlight, so it shouldn’t have too much of an effect on the boy.  Vampires can’t die from poisons.  Right?”

                Natasha’s voice was mockingly flippant.

                “Wow, a werewolf knows more about vampire anatomy and weakness better than the _actual vampires_ present right now.”

                Thor had the decency to look a little abashed, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

                Clint turned to Pietro before he asked, “What chemicals and poisons did Zola use on Parker?”

                Pietro weakly coughed, “I’m not sure…I could smell some like…cocaine, kerosene, DDT…but others…were various acids and chemicals…too many to see or…keep track…”

                Bucky then said with horrified realization, “Shit.  Not to mention that whatever they used to knock Pietro out earlier was laced with holy water, and Pietro’s lungs are _still_ damaged from the vapors.  If Peter was forced to inhale it, he was already too weak from all the numerous experiments Zola did to him to…”

                Bucky trailed off as Strange gave Bucky a hateful glare of pure spite, of absolute blame.

                “How many chemicals did Zola put in him?” Vision asked.

                “Dozens…maybe even a hundred…” Pietro choked before giving out a thick, phlegmy cough.

                “Um…I don’t see why that should be a problem,” Quill piped up, waving his hand at Loki, “You have a guy who knows magic, right?  Can’t you just cast a ‘ _Cure All Poison_ ’ spell on Peter and heal him?”

                Loki’s dry look was hardly encouraging.

                “Oh yes, because it _really_ is that simple…” Loki drawled, “Nice to hear that your pathetic days of playing Dungeons and Dragons in your basement equates to years and years of studying the most arcane magics and texts from various travels and forbidden libraries all over the world and dimensions.”

                Quill blinked before he exclaimed, “ **Hey!**  That’s a lie!  We never played Dungeons and Dragons in our basement!  We play it in the game room like everyone else!”

                Loki’s expression then grew somber as he turned to Doctor Strange and explained, “It would take too much energy to heal that many toxins in such a short period.  And without the knowledge of what was done to Peter exactly, I cannot decipher what counter spells are needed before he passes away completely.”

                “Just raise Zola from the dead!  We can then force him to tell us what he did to Peter and tell us where he has an antidote!” Doctor Strange snapped, but Loki leveled the vampire leader with a flat glare.

                “Again…” Loki repeated evenly, “That is a **bad** idea.  Not only is it risky to bring one of our enemies, a mad scientist, back to life from the dead, but that will take immense time and power to perform such a feat.  Even if I **did** bring him back, there will be copious amounts of effort required make him tell us the truth or determine if he’s lying.  By then, it will be too late to save Peter.  Not that there was much of a chance to begin with - ”

                “ **Loki, shut up** ,” growled Natasha and Wanda as Doctor Strange let loose a sob.

                Tony turned to Bruce, asking, “Can you _make_ an antidote?  You’re the chemistry genius!  You probably have a massive collection of medicines that can help counteract the poisons in Parker.”

                Bruce shook his head helplessly as he explained, “Without knowing what chemicals were used, I can’t just put in every drug cocktail combination and hope for the best!  I need to know **specifically** what Zola used on Peter, or else I might end up putting something that will make it worse!  And there’s a possibility that mixing different antidotes can cause a severe reaction and either cancel each other out or leads to killing him even further!”

                “So…there’s no hope?” Sam asked carefully.

                None of the vampires answered, cautious, but Bruce silently gave a small shake of his head.

                Stephen then knew what the Stark Pack and his vampires were delicately trying to tiptoe around, and his resolve just shattered as he drew the limp Peter to his quivering body.

                “No…” Strange choked, his eyes glistening before he cradled Peter’s prone body close to his chest, “Oh…my son…my son…Peter…no…no…please…”

                There was a solemn silence all around the battlefield as the werewolves and vampires looked on sadly at Strange sobbing over Peter’s body.  Bucky now felt like the world’s biggest heel, and even Clint felt some commiseration for the vampire leader.  Tony was about to step forward and give Stephen a warm embrace when Steve (to his surprise) limped headfirst, extracting himself away from Bucky.

                “Doctor Strange, sir, I - ” began Steve.

                It happened so fast, not even Tony had time to discern it.

                One second, Steve was limping towards Doctor Strange.

                The next instant, Steve found himself seeing stars and the back of his head throbbing from being slammed against the nearby wall (which was over five hundred feet away) while being strangled by Doctor Strange with one hand.  Reflexively, Steve tried to free himself as he grabbed on to Stephen’s wrist, but the fingers of iron tightened even more as Steve was left dangling in the air, the pressure close to snapping his neck and spinal cord in two.  Eyes blurring and unable to breathe, Steve managed to look into Stephen’s scowling, tear-stained face, fangs bared and eyes glowing as hot as the most violent inferno in the Earth’s core.

                Doctor Strange’s voice vibrated with furious murder as he hissed, “My son is dead.”

                “No…” gurgled Steve, now turning red in the face as Bucky and Tony rushed forward, with the coven and Pack close behind, “We can still help - ”

                “ ** _MY SON IS DEAD!_** ” screamed Doctor Strange loudly enough to echo in the mountains, his voice raw with agony and heartache before he raised his other hand, claws extended.

                “An eye for an eye…” the vampire growled.

                Tony tried to rush forward and latched onto the arm Strange was using to choke, trying to tug his grip away from Steve’s neck, roaring, “ **Let go!**   Let him - !”

                There was a swift blur from Stephen’s other hand and Tony collapsed to his knees, choking as four deep gashes from his throat down his chest and abdominals began to gush a bright red.  Bruce paled.

                “Oh Gods…” the Beta gasped as he rushed over to Tony’s side, Tony trying his best to staunch the bleeding with both of his hands.  Strange then turned his attention to Steve.

                “He’ll live,” Strange growled as he raised his free hand again, but then Sam Wilson’s knife suddenly found itself underneath the vampire’s throat, pressing against the jugular vein.

                “ _Do, and you die_ ,” Sam growled from behind.

                “And so will you,” snarled Vision from behind Sam, digging his claws into Sam’s spine.  To his credit, Sam maintained his grip on Doctor Strange.  And also surprisingly, Bucky rushed to Vision, desperately trying to calm his fellow vampires down from further bloodshed.

                “ **Vision, Stephen, stop!**   This has been all a big misunderstanding!  Steve and I weren’t a part of this and we didn’t intend on any of this happening!”

                “Wanda…” commanded Stephen coldly.

                Unwilling to just stand by and watch their leader and one of their own get hurt, Thor and Peter Quill wolfed out and rushed forward with powerful leaps and bounds.  Wanda Maximoff then flicked her hands, and both of the werewolves were ensnared in a cloud of red magic, the energy encompassing them and suspending them in midair.  Wanda then reached out and telekinetically held onto Bucky before dragging him away from Strange, Sam, and Vision.

                “No!” hollered Bucky, struggling against Wanda’s magic, “ ** _Don’t!_**   This isn’t what you think!  It’s **not** Steve’s fault!”

                “Don’t make this harder than it already is…” warned Wanda, pleading softly at Bucky, “You’re lucky Strange decided to not kill you in the wolf’s place.”

                Strange was about to decapitate Steve when a soft click of a gun’s hammer caught his attention.

                “Don’t even try it…” Clint informed in the background, aiming a rather wicked Barretta at Doctor Strange’s head, one arm still looped around Pietro’s waist.  There was little question that the hunter could make the shot from that far away.

                “Loki…” growled Doctor Strange as Sam’s knife bit into his skin, signaling to the vampire mage.

                To Stephen’s aggravation, Loki held up his hands, grinning, “I’d rather not, if you do not mind, Stephen.  I am perfectly fine with everyone killing each other in a senseless, pointless battle without my unnecessary involvement, and I could use the entertainment without needing to get blood and dirt of my suit.”

                “ _Seriously?!_ ” blurted out Wanda and Vision in disgust.

                Loki scoffed as he pointed at his attire, saying, “This is a limited Stuart Hughes.  Do you have any idea how much specialized dry cleaning it takes to make it look this good?”

                “Natasha!” barked Stephen with the unspoken command to kill the hunter.  Natasha just coolly lifted a manicured eyebrow as she surveyed the landscape with a calculating look.  Clint felt his gut clench a bit as he was prepared to shoot her first.

                Then to everyone’s surprise, the red-haired vampire did something completely unexpected.

                Natasha rolled her eyes as she commented in the background, “OK, can this get even **more** of a dick-measuring contest?”

                Stephen swore after this night he was going to recruit vampires that would **actually** obey his commands instead of mocking them.

                To Clint’s slight admiration, Natasha then took charge with a reasonable solution.

                “If everyone stands down, **both wolves and vampires** , maybe we can try to get Steve and James’ story from their own mouths and see what Steve Rogers meant when he said we can still help Peter before we start jumping to conclusions.  Unless if both sides are perfectly all right with losing their friends and family members in a pointless fight to the death and making it easier for our enemies to finish us off once they start regrouping back here.”

                There was one tense moment.  Then three.

                With great disinclination, Stephen released his grip around Steve’s neck, causing Steve to collapse in a heap, coughing as he massaged his raw throat.  Wanda released her captives, and Bucky rushed over to his werewolf’s side, causing both Tony and Stephen’s to raise their eyebrows in puzzled shock as the other werewolves and vampires backed away from each other in a temporary cease fire.

                Thankfully, Tony’s healing factor was already slowing his severe hemorrhaging down to a crawl as his lacerations mended together.

                Still, the sorrow and anger at Peter’s death did not abate in the slightest as Doctor Strange stared down mercilessly at Steve and Bucky.

                “ ** _Explain_** ,” was all Doctor Strange growled.

                Natasha then segued, “James, Steve, about Peter?  We don’t have much time.”

                Steve sputtered, “Have him drink my blood.  It might be enough to heal him and neutralize the poisons Zola put in his body.  It might even be enough to save Peter.”

                “ _Don’t lie to me!_ ” snarled Doctor Strange, eyes glowing red.

                Bucky then interjected, “Sir, it’s **not** a lie.  Steve’s blood might save Peter.”

                “What?  _Impossible!_   That would only work if Steve is…” and the words died in Bruce’s throat as he, Tony, Doctor Strange and everyone else eavesdropping made the mental click and connection.

                Tony was now staring at an ashamed Steve with a mixture of disbelief, betrayal, and outrage.

                “You’re…you’re an _Omega_?” Quill murmured, and underneath the hurt of the deception, Tony and the others could discern it in Thor and Quill’s eager eyes and their posture, the innate hunger as they were now aware of Steve’s aroma.  Already, Thor was salivating at the thought of himself and Quill holding down a struggling and submissive Steve in a hot, sweaty threesome.

                Sam shut his eyes before he spoke out loud.

                “It’s true.  Steve is an Omega.  I got a whiff of his scent when I escorted Barnes to where Steve was being imprisoned.  He was taking suppressants to mask his scent before he got kidnapped,” Sam stated.

                “And an Omega werewolf’s blood supposedly has **healing properties** …” Clint pieced together.

                “ _Supposedly??_ ” Pietro echoed.

                “It’s never been proven and assumed as a myth, a fabrication, an exaggeration due to tales of werewolves and vampires passed down for so many years.  Like the notion of there being a vampire King and Queen or that they’re afraid of garlic…” Clint explained.

                Vision turned to Bruce Banner and asked incredulously, “Wait, you’re a werewolf yourself and yet you don’t even know if this rumor about _your own kind_ is true or false?”

                “We don’t experiment on each other!” snapped Bruce, his eyes flashing.

                Doctor Strange did his best to regain his composure as he said, trembling, “I…there’s no guarantee.  It may not work, and I’ll still lose Peter.  We don’t know how many toxins Zola poisoned my son with, and your blood may not be enough.”

                “Not if we get Loki to use his magic to amplify my blood while we drain it into Peter’s mouth.  He’s powerful enough to do it,” Steve said.

                Everyone turned to Loki who made a big dramatic expression of rubbing his chin with his finger and thumb.

                “It _is_ theoretically possible…” Loki admitted at last, “If it works, I have the sole ownership of patent and bragging rights for this hackneyed discovery.  If it doesn’t, I get Peter’s room to renovate as my own personal library.  Either way, win-win.”

                Strange had to force himself with every fiber of his being to not punch Loki hard in the mouth.

                Tony appeared as if he was trying to control himself from screaming himself hoarse at Steve’s omission, the memories of all of his subordinate’s past behavior and strange conduct now beginning to make sense.

                All those mysterious disappearances and Steve looking exhausted each morning during training without explanation…

                Why Tony caught faint whiffs of Steve’s scent here and there whenever he went to go negotiate with Strange at his mansion…

                The mysterious empty canisters of Tylenol found in the trash that Bruce discovered had traces of a drug that was most certainly **not** aspirin…

                All this time…

                If Tony wasn’t busy with his wounds, he would have slapped Steve hard across the face.

                Repeatedly.

                Natasha then broke the standoff by coming directly to Strange’s side and grabbing his elbow gently before she made her point.

                “Stephen,” she whispered in his ear, “A slim chance to save Peter is better than no chance at all.  It doesn’t matter where that chance is coming from, so move and let James and Steven try, or else Peter will die because you refused to let go of your pride and hesitation.”

                Stephen twitched before he gritted his teeth and whirled on Steve and Bucky, two angry rivers running down his cheeks.

                “Do it…” he hissed, “Do whatever it takes to save my son.”

                Steve looked at the wrathful Tony, who just managed to give a curt nod of permission, his wounds now knitting themselves closed.  Clint put away his gun.

                Loki made a melodramatic and lugubrious sigh as he ordered to Vision, “Lay out Peter’s body here.  James, have Steve come over and kneel next to Peter.”

                Everyone complied while the Stark Pack and Doctor Strange’s Coven made an impromptu circle all around, various emotions and worries running high.  Although Sam didn’t particularly feel comfortable on the longing and envious looks Thor and Peter Quill were giving Steve, now staring at him longingly like the Holy Grail.  Nor was he comfortable with the purple-faced Tony looking as if he wanted to throttle Steve with his bare hands himself.

                Loki gripped his scepter as he instructed to Steve (who was sitting heavily on the group and with one arm still lopped around Bucky’s shoulders in fatigue), “Give me your hand.”

                Steve complied, and then Loki couldn’t help but add cheekily, “Now this may hurt a bit.  Oh no, wait, change that ‘may’ to ‘ _will certainly_ ’.”

                And before anyone could tell Loki to shut up, Loki plunged the pointed end of his scepter into Steve’s wrist and gave it a deft twist, gorging the flesh completely through.  To his credit, Steve winced but didn’t cry out.  Loki positioned Steve’s arm over Peter’s lips as he gingerly pried them open, letting the steady stream of blood trickle and gush down Peter’s throat.  Then with a flourish, the head of Loki’s scepter began to glow a brilliant blue as Loki pressed it on top of Steve’s hand, casting a spell on the red rivulet and augmenting the Omega’s blood as much as he could.

                Steve took it like a champ, without complaint and without noise as he felt the magic cause his entire arm to go numb, growing colder and colder while his blood felt like it was pure molten rock, fiery and excruciating.  Bucky murmured soft words of encouragement as Steve felt like he was going to vomit again, his head spinning and causing him to vertigo.

                One minute passed, then two, then five, but nobody dared to move or interrupt.

                Strange was biting his lip in trepidation, clenching his fists so hard that blood was dripping out of the tightly packed fingers.  Tony softly ambled up to Strange and tentatively laid a bloodstained hand on the vampire leader’s shoulders, squeezing gently.

                Tony expected Stephen to furiously rebuff the gesture, and the Alpha was inwardly relieved when Stephen relaxed his body a fraction at the touch of his lover.

                Still, Stephen’s mind was a flurry of anguished thoughts as he bit his lip, trembling visibly.

                _Ba bump._

                Tony blinked.

                It was so soft, faint, and quickly fleeting that it was easy to think he imagined it.

                Until he noticed that the heads of Thor, Sam, Bruce, and Peter Quill also perked up, in hope.

                _Ba bump._

_Ba bump._

                This time there was no mistaking it.

                “His heart’s beating again…” murmured Tony, his breath catching in his throat.  Stephen looked at Tony wildly before gripping his shirt like a drowning man reaching for a life preserver.

                “ _What?!_   What did you say?!”

                “We can hear it,” Quill stated, “We can hear Peter’s heartbeat.  It’s weak, but it’s there.”

                “And his color’s coming back…” Vision sighed in relief, letting out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding as Peter Parker’s complexion was less waxy and pale, his face and cheeks gaining color at a sluggish and gradual rate.

                Doctor Strange looked like he was going to rush over, and Tony gently held on to the vampire, murmuring, “No, don’t.  Not yet, _not yet_.  Let them work.”

                Stephen’s breathing was now ragged, trying his best to not break down as he stood still.

                Peter’s eyes then flew open, taking everyone by surprise.

                “Oh!” gasped Wanda, Thor, and Bruce in unison before Peter, lost of all sense and thought, immediately grabbed Steve’s wrist and began hungrily sucking and drawing blood, drinking deeply and lost in complete animalistic instinct.

                There was no question about it: Peter was now conscious and fully alive, his heart now a rapid staccato as Peter found himself out of control and so very, very hungry.

                Steve cried out in pain as Peter began to devour his flesh and blood, his arm getting cold as ice, and Sam immediately tried to rush forward to break them apart, but Loki raised a hand.

                “He’s not out of the danger zone yet,” Loki warned, “We need every drop your Omega can spare.”

                “It’s OK!  Let him drink!” shouted Steve, gasping in agony as Peter sunk his fangs deeper and deeper into his vein.  Averse, Sam slowly took two steps back as Steve’s blood gushed more and more, with the young vampire gulping greedily in a daze.

                Unfortunately, this was to Steve’s detriment as the blood loss was now too severe, and Steve pitched to his side, almost in a faint as Peter continued to feed.  Seeing Steve now close to blacking out, Bucky then audaciously grabbed Peter by the shoulders and forced the teenager to let go, screaming, “ ** _Stop!_** That’s enough!  Peter, wake up!  **Wake up!**   You’ll kill him!”

                Before Strange could backhand Bucky for cheekily laying a hand on his son, Peter let out a loud gasp before he collapsed weakly to his side, whimpering and now slowly becoming cognizant, walking out of the frenzied stupor.

                Peter managed to choke out one word faintly.

                “Dad…”

                Stephen Strange rushed forward, none so gently shoving Bucky and Steve to the side before he scooped up Peter in his arms, tearfully delivering kisses on Peter’s face, whispering, “It’s all right, my son.  _My son_.  It’s all right.  Oh Gods, Peter…”

                Vision helped Strange bundle up the cold and weak Peter in Vision’s coat, as Bucky helped Steve rise on his hands and knees, ripping a piece of his shirt to bandage his bleeding wrist.

                “Steve, you OK?”

                Steve vomited out bile as a response, ungraciously splattering foul liquid on the ground.

                Sam tensed as he could sense the cold and icy silence from the other members of the Stark Pack, and Tony was in the forefront, hands balled into his fists and every muscle flexed and corded with anger.

                When finally Tony trusted himself to finally speak, his voice was flat.

                “So.  You and Barnes?”

                Steve tried to not falter as he looked directly into his Alpha’s eyes and gave a single nod.

                “Vampire and werewolf relations are fucking forbidden.  Did you happened to conveniently forget that tidbit, Rogers?” growled Tony, baring his teeth.

                “Oh, get off your high horse!” snapped Sam, “We all know you and Doctor Strange have been giving each other fuck sessions for the past two years!”

                Tony roared, his eyes blazing hotly like the sun, “ ** _THAT DOESN’T MEAN I WOULD ABANDON MY PACK FOR HIM!_** ”

                At this, Stephen finally frowned at Tony.

                Clint then asked softly from the sidelines, “Steve, Bucky, what happened exactly?  Give us the short version.”

                Steve halfheartedly gave a thorough summary of how he, Pietro, and Peter got kidnapped by Crossbones and his men, how they delivered them to the strange and mysterious Alpha, and what Steve witnessed from the Alpha’s powers of the three hired hands he gruesomely killed, and that Steve was planning to run away with Bucky because he couldn’t bear to be sent away from the Stark Pack and separated from his lover.

                There was a meditative silence as the Stark Pack and Strange’s Coven digested these facts.

                “An Alpha that knows magic?” Wanda asked with disbelief.

                Loki frowned; that was an anomaly.

                “I think…I think we have a new enemy…” Thor mused.

                Bracing himself, Steve then asked as Bucky himself him rise to his feet, “What now?”

                Tony then rumbled, “We will handle the situation accordingly, but you’re no longer included.  You’re out of the Pack, Steve.  **Permanently**.”

                There was a whine from both Thor and Peter Quill, with Thor pleading, “Tony, please, he’s - !”

                One death glare with blazing eyes caused both of the werewolves to shut up before Tony continued his judgement.

                “Go and fuck off with Barnes.  If either of you come back into our territory, I’ll personally kill you myself.”

                “The same applies to our coven as well,” Stephen said with ice, “You saved Peter, and for that, I’m thankful, but it changes nothing.  Nor does it mitigate that you essentially betrayed my trust and turned your backs on your own kind.  Neither of you are welcome in my home ever again.”

                Bucky maintained a respectful gaze at Doctor Strange’s eyes as he nodded.  It hurt, but he expected this, and as long as Pietro and Peter were now OK and safe…

                Tony then twisted the knife even further as he barked at Steve, “And don’t bother coming back to ask for your stuff, Rogers.  I’m burning all of it the second I get back home.”

                Steve looked up, white in the face.  His artbooks, his sketches and paintings, his journals and the small photo album of his parents…

                Tony looked pleased at the dawning horror of the Omega’s expression before he turned to his Pack and gave a brusque command.

                “Let’s go home.  We’re done here,” Tony declared.

                Though Thor and Quill looked back at Steve sadly, without a word, they followed their Alpha while Bruce walked away without a glance back.  Strange nodded as he picked up Peter and carried his child, bridal style, in his arms while Vision picked up the corpses of Zola and Rumlow, hefting them over his shoulder.

                Steve and Bucky got the feeling that Strange’s earlier threats to raise them from the dead only to kill them again wasn’t idle…

                Loki made a dramatic and melodramatic bow at Bucky and Steven, coyly stating, “I thank you both.  You two have made me a very famous vampire.  I’ll be known throughout the country for this.”

                Bucky was too tired to tell the spellcaster to shut up as Loki practically skipped away in glee.

                Meanwhile, Wanda was trying to convince Pietro to come with her with Strange and his ilk, but Pietro shook his head. Wanda was no fool, and she looked back and forth between Pietro and Clint before she asked hesitantly, "Will you make sure he's safe?"

                “You have my word,” Clint promised, "I'll text you daily updates, and as long as you send me notice you're coming, you're free to visit when you can".

                “Thank you,” whispered Wanda as she kissed Pietro on the cheek, hugging her brother for all he was worth before she dashed off.

                As the vampires left, Peter Parker threw Steve and Bucky a shaky and grateful smile over Stephen’s shoulder, and that lessened the icy clench around Steve’s gut, knowing that Strange’s son didn’t hate him.

                So were Natasha and Sam’s touching farewells as they both ambled towards Steve and Bucky.

                Sam then murmured to Steve low enough for only him to hear, “I’ll try to hide all your stuff I can before Tony can get it.  I’ll mail it to Barton when it’s safe, and he’ll get it to you.”

                “Sam…” choked Steve, so very grateful.

                Sam hugged Steve around the neck fiercely, muttering, “Don’t think I’m not still pissed at you.”

                However, Sam then lingered his mouth inches apart from Steve’s, as if hesitating to kiss the Omega, before he changed his mind and Sam just chastely pecked Steve’s cheek instead.  His eyes flashed to Bucky.

                “You better make him damned happy…” Sam growled, showing his teeth.  Bucky nodded, not breaking eye contact, and Sam dashed away, surreptitiously wiping his eyes as he joined up with his pack amongst the trees.

                Natasha also kissed Bucky on the cheek before she murmured, “You and Steve saved Peter’s life.  Stephen won’t forget that.  _I won’t let him_ forget that.”

                For some reason, Bucky got a sudden feeling of pity for Doctor Strange.

                With that, she fled into the shadows, and all that remained of the temporary alliance were Clint, Pietro, Steve, and Bucky.

                There was silence as the four of them just stood there, a soft yet cold breeze drifting around them amid the smoke and massacre before Bucky croaked out.

                “Where do we go now?”

                All he and Steve had were the clothes on their backs.

                Clint then made a grand gesture as he offered, “Ah, what the Hell.  I’ve got a few spare bedrooms and it’s pretty heavily fortified.  Stay with me and the kid until we can get you two on your way to someplace safer.  That OK with you?”

                Steve and Bucky nodded, grateful.

                Pietro made an aggravated sound of extreme irritation.

                The vampire groaned melodramatically in between coughs, “Oh by the Gods…you two just love…to make my life…a living Hell, don’t you?!”

\---

                Bucky and Steve couldn’t both stop apologizing to each other.

                Bucky kept apologizing as he bandaged Steve’s wounds, after he set Steve’s broken ankle and splinted it, after each kiss he delivered to Steve’s face.

                In tandem, Steve also kept apologizing for worrying Bucky when he didn’t arrive at their meeting place, for putting Bucky in this precarious position, and for losing whatever standing and good graces he had with Doctor Strange and the rest of the Coven.

                Annoyed, Clint playfully joked that they got it: Steve’s sorry, Bucky’s sorry, everyone knows that they’re both sorry, and they both needed to shut up and go the fuck to sleep.

                In the guest bedroom, Steve and Bucky still tapped on each other’s wrists in Morse Code.

                W-E-S-T-I-L-L-H-A-V-E-E-A-C-H-O-T-H-E-R.

                I-N-E-A-R-L-Y-L-O-S-T-Y-O-U.

                I-D-O-N-T-B-L-A-M-E-Y-O-U-B-U-C-K.

                I-W-O-N-T-E-V-E-R-L-E-T-T-H-I-S-H-A-P-P-E-N-T-O-Y-O-U-A-G-A-I-N.

                I-L-O-V-E-Y-O-U.

                Unable to respond back, Bucky let loose a soft sob as he kissed Steve gingerly on the forehead.

                The Omega and the vampire nestled under the covers of their bed before they dozed off into an uneasy slumber, hugging each other tightly and foreheads touching.

                Clint checked on them and Pietro who was also dozing lightly thanks to being hooked to an oxygen tank to help with the pure-blood’s breathing, the mask strapped to Pietro’s face.  It would take time, but Clint was confident that Pietro would recover from his kidnapping and poisonings.

                In the darkness of his home, Clint quietly checked the perimeter and his security systems before satisfied that there were no intruders or eavesdroppers before he picked up his phone and dialed a discreet number.  A rather gruff and irate voice greeted him on the other end.

                “Barton, what the fuck do you want now?”

                “Fury, you’re not going to like this.”

                “As opposed to your _normal_ M.O.?”

                Clint then slowly and carefully retold Fury the events that transpired based on Steve and Pietro’s testimonies, from their kidnapping to their rescue and expulsion from the Pack and Coven.  Fury remained silent before he then asked with a bit of skepticism.

                “An Alpha?  That has one red eye and one yellow eye and apparently has some magical ability to drain a human into ash and eat their souls?”

                “I don’t think Rogers was lying or delusional, and given the number of men in that research building and the fact that he managed to coerce Rumlow of all people to work for him, I’m willing to bet it’s real.  You don’t accumulate _that_ much money or authority without having a reason for people to fear you.”

                “One red eye, one yellow eye.  That’s the interesting part…”

                “I thought so too.  You thinking a hybrid?  Wouldn’t explain why it’s an Alpha though or why Rogers was targeted specifically,” Clint highlighted.

                “Who says that Rogers was the target?” Fury pointed out, “I’m starting to suspect that Rogers was supposed to be the bait.”

                “That would be an odd way to take down the Stark Pack…” mused Clint, “Omegas have no standing - ”

                “I wasn’t referring to Tony Stark.  What do we know about James Barnes?  And his parents and family history?”

                Clint paused, blinking.  He didn’t think of that.

\---

                At his luxurious castle, Alexander Pierce toasted to himself before he took a sip of his Richebourg next to his fireplace, sinking with warmth and comfort in his leather chair.

                The Stark Pack and Strange’s Coven were now in full alert and paranoia, watching over their lands and members as if they thought they were the actual targets.

                Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes were now exiled, hated, and alone, with no support group and friends to depend on, completely vulnerable.

                And no matter where they fled, Pierce would eventually find them.  There was no place where his organization’s influence did not reach, did not lay waiting in every port and major city, did not have agents and spies amongst the human populations.

                Bucky Barnes would be theirs at last.

                And if Bucky refused or fought back?

                Well, it just so happened that Bucky would gladly throw himself into the bowels of Hell if it meant saving Steve Rogers.  The Omega who just happened to be his one pressure point.

                “ _Hail Hydra…_ ” smiled Pierce to his glass.


End file.
